VU 420 is undergoing work to host both the Western LEADS program and Off-Campus Living. Joe Addison // AS Review
By Kiaya Wilson
The former home of the Ethnic Student Center, which is now housed in the Multicultural Center, is VU 420 and students may be wondering, what is going to happen to that space? The room will be transformed into the new home of Western Leaders Engaged in Action, Discernment and Skills-building [LEADS] and Off-campus Living.
Eric Alexander, associate dean for student engagement and director of the Viking Union, said he is excited for this move, and other changes to come.
“Overall, I would say this move is part of a larger set of planned moves that are designed to maximize how our programs use space and operate in the VU,” Alexander said.
Western LEADS and Off-campus Living are working together to make the space better fit their programs’ needs. The most important addition will be a conference space for the programs to use.
“Most of the changes are in paint and in furniture,” Alexander said. However, for people who have seen the space before the transition, it will look very unfamiliar.
Leadership Development Specialist Joanne Demark detailed the modifications being made to the space.
“We want to put a glass wall [in the main area] to create a small conference room for students to have meetings,” Demark said.
The LEADS program is designed for undergraduate and graduate students to learn valuable life skills that prepare them to be leaders in and outside of their college experience. This program is going through a multitude of changes, such as building a more interactive online presence and possibly the return of their masters and student affairs program, which Demark said is a major reason for them to move into this new space. Demark said her program wants to have a bigger space so that they are more accessible to students.
“Most campuses would not have a tiny office,” Demark said. “This is a bit of a threshold program.” Demark added this program helps students interact with their communities and grow leadership skills that can be used throughout their professional lives, which is what makes it a threshold program.
Alexander agreed that the program needed more space to host all the events they want to, such as résumé clinics and collaborative presentations with local community service organizations.
“Moving the LEADS program into a space more conducive to hosting community partners, doing pre-trip trainings and supporting a broader band of work required different space than they currently operate within,” Alexander said.
Demark said she wants to add digital badges to encourage students to work in their own communities, whether that’s in Bellingham or their hometown. Digital badges are online badges that students receive after they have accomplished a task like volunteering in their community or attending certain events.
“We want to reinforce career readiness,” Demark said. “Open the door for students to think critically.”
Digital badges can be completed through online modules or attending certain events. Along with earning digital badges, Western LEADS hopes to offer résumé clinics and interview practices in this new office space.
Demark said since they will be moving into a bigger office space, they are looking to hire four or five new students to work in the new office space, with the possibility of hiring another student to work on the sixth floor of the VU.
Along with Western LEADS, the Off-campus Living office will also be moving into VU 420.
“As we looked for potential synergies, this was a set of programs who may be able to work together,” Alexander said. “In addition, as we thought of ways to use the space in the best possible way this mix seemed to work.”
The manager of Off-campus Living, Julia Burns, said she is very excited for her program to be moving into this space.
“Right now, I have three to four students working in a tiny office,” Burns said. “We’ll have more space and I’ll be able to have open office hours.”
Burns said that she was originally hoping to create a lounge for commuter students in the new space. She wanted to have a place for students to sit, eat and relax, with cubbies or lockers for them to leave their things, but there wasn’t enough space to include that, Burns said.
Burns added that they haven’t had the opportunity to partner with certain offices on campus because they haven’t had the best location to collaborate in. One of these offices is the Student Advocacy and Identity Resource Center [SAIRC] which provides advocacy and information to students across campus.
“A big reason we wanted to move in there was to have conference space,” Burns said. “We’ll possibly be able to partner with ESC clubs and SAIRC.”
Burns said they are hoping to host presentations, lease review days and how to find off-campus housing workshops in the new space.
“We’re happy to be [moving] in the VU,” Burns said. “And to be closer to students.”
Burns and Demark both said they are very excited to move into this new space and see what it brings to their programs. There is no set timeline for the move yet, but they are in the process of talking to Western’s interior designer and are hoping to be moved in by Spring 2020.